Nigerian oil refineries in Port Harcourt and Warri will be fixed by the first quarter of 2024 and will allow the state to stop importing fuel by next year, the country's Minister of State for Petroleum Resources Heineken Lokpobiri stated during his inspection visit to Port Harcourt.
"From what we have seen here, we believe the project will be completed as scheduled. The Port Harcourt Refinery will come on board fully by the end of this year, 2023. Warri will start operating by the first quarter of next year," he was quoted by media as saying.
The minister clarified that Part Harcourt is expected to start operating in December, while Warri will begin refining petroleum products in February.
The official also shared expectations for the production levels of the two refineries, around 60 barrels per day for Port Harcourt and 75 barrels per day for Warri, highlighting that the total processing capacities of local refineries may enable Nigeria to end fuel imports.
"The Port Harcourt Refinery when completed is expected to produce about 54 to 60 barrels per day, while Warri refinery when it comes on stream by February, 2024 will produce 75 barrels of oil per day. If we add that to Dangote refinery we will be able to stop fuel imports and Nigeria can now have the benefits of full deregulation," he said.
In addition, Lokpobiri expressed satisfaction with the results of the inspection visit, adding that it he also plans to tour the Warri and Kaduna refineries.
"We will be going round all the refineries in the country, from Port Harcourt, we will go to Warri, to Kaduna. We will also go to the Dangote refinery to see the level of work there. Our objective is to ensure that in the next few years, Nigeria stops fuel importation and that is why we are here to see the extent of work done, and we are satisfied with what we are seeing here," he revealed.
The minister also assured that during the presidency of the country's incumbent leader Bola Tinubu, "Nigerians should expect a better supply of fuel and a better economy."
In late May, Nigerian then-president Muhammadu Buhari inaugurated the Dangote Oil Refinery, the largest in Africa with a capacity of 650,000 barrels per day.
Kaduna refinery, situated in Northern Nigeria, was shut down for renovation work in December 2019 along with the Warri refinery.